checking

If you’d wanted to watch Aereo’s unique antenna-to-internet TV streaming until today, you had to tune in from an iOS device or Roku box. That’s not a lot of choice for placeshifting, is it? A fresh update to the company’s streaming service has widened the choices considerably for New Yorkers to include all the major browsers on Macs and Windows PCs. As long as you’re using a recent version of Chrome, Firefox, Internet Explorer, Opera or Safari, you can catch up on Ion or Telemundo while you’re checking email. About the only restrictions left are the continued lack of Android support and occasional lawsuits from traditionalist broadcasters.

When I looked at my own Facebook Timeline, to my horror I saw Pinterest had followed people I didnt know and definitely did NOT follow AND it posted it to my Facebook Timeline. No wonder I keep getting notices of other people following me — people I don’t know or others whom I have not interacted with for years!.

The more I use Pinterest the more I HATE it. See my previous post about Pinterest auto-following 274 Facebook friends when I signed up, without first checking with me.

iPhone/Android: This Saturday, December 10 would be a good day to go shopping. Amazon’s offering 5% off (up to $5) for select items if you barcode scan them using its Price Check app; the offer can be used three times.

To get the discount, you’ll need to check prices on a qualifying item in one of these categories: Electronics, toys, sports, music, and DVDs. After putting it in your shopping cart with the Price Check App, you’ll have 24 hours to buy it (you can do it from the Amazon website or other Amazon apps) and get the 5% discount automatically applied.

As we’ve noted before Amazon Price Check is a really versatile price checking app you can use to look up products using your voice, photos, barcodes, or old-fashioned text search.

The promotion starts at 9pm PST December 9 and runs through 11:59pm PST December 10. So go download the app by the weekend, if you haven’t already.

If you’re looking to learn some new development or design skills, Treehouse can teach your the core knowledge you need. The site offers a focused look at the basics of object oriented programming, the principals of good design, and how to make an iPhone app.

The lessons take you through your topic of choice in video form, explain everything in clear and precise terms, and award you badges as you make your way through. If you’re willing to pay extra, you’ll also get access to project videos which will take you through the process of creating real-world projects from start to finish. I’ve been meaning to improve my pathetic Objective C skills and learn to develop for iOS but had yet to come across a set of lessons I really liked. After watching a few at Treehouse I was pretty hooked. If you’ve been looking to pick up one of these valuable skills as well, their lessons are definitely worth checking out.

Note: I made an error and initially thought Treehouse was free. First, sorry for the misleading information! Second, we still think it’s pretty nice. Pricing is $25/month for basic access and $49/month for premium. (More information here.) That’s about on par with our other favorite, Lynda. Lynda offers you far more topics but Treehouse has a nice focus (and, at the moment, a more up-to-date iOS course). Sorry again that I completely missed the cost of the service, but it’s still pretty cool and worth a look if it’s within your budget.

ThinkLink’s FaceCash mobile payment system has debuted several apps (for BlackBerry, iPhone, and Android devices) which allow you to pay for things merely by scanning your phone — and showing off the attached photo to confirm it is, in fact, your own money that you’re spending. You sign up, link your FaceCash account to your personal checking and savings account, and you’re good to go with participating merchants. The apps can also store credit card numbers and banking information (perfect for when you lose your phone during a night of heavy partying), making it easier to leave your wallet or purse behind… or so they say. Sadly, FaceCash currently only has merchants in California, and really, who wants to live there?

Digital Consigliere

Dr. Augustine Fou is Digital Consigliere to marketing executives, advising them on digital strategy and Unified Marketing(tm). Dr Fou has over 17 years of in-the-trenches, hands-on experience, which enables him to provide objective, in-depth assessments of their current marketing programs and recommendations for improving business impact and ROI using digital insights.